Melting Icicles
by cinderheart4life
Summary: Melting Icicles is about a small kit that was left alone near the Thunderclan camp. She grows up, trying her hardest to prove herself to the others, and to herself. But what she doesn't realize is that she didn't need to prove herself- she was born a Warrior. Hope ya like it! Please Review!
1. Chapter 1

** I do not own Warriors.**

**HI! It's cinderheart4life here, and I'm making a new Warriors Story! Melting Icicles is about a small kit that was left alone near the Thunderclan camp. She grows up, trying her hardest to prove herself to the others, and to herself. But what she doesn't realize is that she didn't need to prove herself- she was born a Warrior. ****Hope ya like it!**

Chapter One- The Weakest Kit

Bloomingwillow's POV

I wash my tortoiseshell pelt thoroughly. Foxclaw had chased me through some thorns! It's obvious he has this huge crush on me, but he doesn't have to torment me! Bramblestar tried to apologize for his son's actions, but I couldn't accept it. Too much pride, I guess.

_Oh, why are you such a stubborn mouse-brain, Bloomingwillow! Why- wait, was that kit-mewling?_

I lift my head and sniff the air. Kit scent! My head turns to Bramblestar's den.

_Please, Starclan, let him be in there!_

I bound up the rocky hill to Bramblestar's den. He was sitting there, grooming his chest fur. He looks up, confused.

"May I help you, Bloomingwillow?" He asks, seeming a little agitated.

"Um, well, I heard kit mewling near the entrance of camp." I explain.

"Inside camp or outside?" Bramblestar inquiries, ears pricking forward.

"Outside." I confirm. Bramblestar stands and nods at me.

"Thank you for alerting me." He brushes past me and out into the clearing. I trot after the Thunderclan leader, curious. Bramblestar pads out of the camp and sniffs around. He hurries to a clump of grass and picks up a tiny, white kit. I gasp.

"Good job, Bloomingwillow." He pushes back into camp. I trot after him.

Bramblestar walks into the nursery, leaving me alone in the clearing, near Foxclaw. I groan.

Foxclaw grins at me slyly as he walks over to my area in camp. "Hey, Bloomingwillow. Want to race again?"

I hiss at him. "No!"

Foxclaw rolls his eyes. "Denial!"

I spike up my fur and charge into the nursery as Bramblestar heads out. There I see the weak kit I found.

_Poor little kit. Abandon, weak. _

I walk out, too depressed to stay. Bramblestar is waiting for me.

"Bloomingwillow, her name is Iciclekit." He tells me, like I care.

"It's a very nice name." I confirm, and start walking away, thinking one thing:

_Good luck, Iciclekit._


	2. Chapter 2

**I do not own Warriors.**

**Hi! That last chapter was just a sort of prologue... so here we go! FYI: This chapter takes place a moon after last chapter.**

Chapter Two- Thunderclan

Iciclekit's POV

I open my bright blue eyes and look around. I still couldn't get over how big this place was! My eyes wander to Scarletkit and Waterkit's nest. They scrunch up their noses, like I'm old prey. I quickly stalk over to them. Scarletkit sighs and Waterkit sneers at me.

"You're not a Thunderclan cat!" The big gray tom-kit hisses. Scarletkit high-paws her brother. I stare up at them, confused.

"My only memories are here!" I shoot back.

Scarletkit snorts. "Mommy told me that Daddy found you in a bush! He should've named you Bushkit!"

"Bushkit! Bushkit! Bushkit!" Waterkit teases. I droop my ears and back up a step. Scarletkit looks at me sadly, just for a tiny second, and then looks away.

"There is something you can do, if you really want to be a Thunderclan cat." The red-orange she-kit suggests. I prick my ears forward.

"Anything!" I bounce up and down in glee. "What is it?"

Scarletkit looks over to Waterkit and whispers in his ear. Once she finishes, he nods, and they both stand up.

"If you want to be a Thunderclan cat, you have to be brave!" Waterkit announces, and I look up at him, puzzled.

"Go on." I urge.

"Well, that means that you need to climb the rocks up to Bramblestar's den!" Waterkit finishes. The two look at me like I'm going to give up. After a few moments of my silence, Scarletkit laughs.

"I knew you wouldn't-"

"I'll do it." I interrupt her. They look at me like I'm crazy. I march out of the nursery, my chest puffed out, my head held high, and I walk over to the bottom of the rocks. _It's so big! I'll never be able to climb it! But I have to!_

Shakily, I place one paw on the first rock. I heave the rest of my body up and continue onto the second, and then the third, and then the fourth, and all the way to the last rock. But this one was the high ledge. I gather all my strength and crouch down, bunching up my muscles to...

_JUMP!_

My front paws reach the rock but my hind paws don't. I scream, my little claws barely keeping me on the ledge. It was at least a six-tail-length drop! Fighting for my life, I drag myself onto the rock, reaching the top and panting hysterically. My little sides heaved as I hyperventilated. Bramblestar padded out of the den and saw me. Angry lit up his amber eyes as he stepped forward to glare down at Scarletkit and Waterkit.

"Squirrelflight, get our kits in the clearing _now._" Foxclaw trotted forward and watched them.

"Squirrelflight's hunting!" He called back. I stand shakily and stare up at the gigantic leader. He noses me towards the Medicine Cat Den. Jayfeather sits inside, sorting herbs. His blind eyes look up.

"Bramblestar. How may I help you?" He meows. Bramblestar pushes me forward.

"Scarletkit and Waterkit made her climb up the rocks. Her pads are probably sore, and she probably ripped out a claw." Bramblestar explains. Jayfeather nods and turns to his herbs again. Bramblestar leaves the den, making me sit there, alone.

Jayfeather finally turns to me and puts something on my paw pads. I stick out my tongue, disgusted. Then he washes it into the pads, moisturizing them. Then he checked my claws. "No problem with your claws. Okay, you can go. No climbing for a while!" He calls after me as I pad away.

Bloomingwillow walks over to me. "Need me to carry you?"

_No! I need to prove that I am a Thunderclan cat, brave and strong!_

I shake my head and begin my journey. Carefully placing my paws, I step down the hollow, finally reaching the bottom. There sit Scarletkit and Waterkit, ears drooped as Bramblestar walks over.

"Why would you do that?" Bramblestar asks sternly.

"We were just kidding-" Waterkit begins.

"_Just kidding_?" Bramblestar interrupts. "Iciclekit could've _died_ and you would say, _just kidding_?"

Scarletkit's head turns to her paws. "I'm sorry Daddy."

Bramblestar nods. "As you both should be."

Waterkit looks up sadly. "What's our punishment?" He lip quivers.

Bramblestar looks to Squirrelflight, who was sitting beside him. Then he looks back down at the kits. "You can't leave the nursery without alerting a warrior. Then the warrior must escort you to wherever you must go. And, you have to change the moss in the nursery, elders den, and Medicine Cat den every two days."

Waterkit groans, but Scarletkit keeps her tongue.

Bramblestar squints his eyes. "Oh, so you would rather want you apprenticeship delayed?" They both shake their heads.

"Okay. You may return to the nursery." Bramblestar licks his kits' heads reassuringly before they go.

I pad to the entrance to the nursery, but curl up outside the den and watch the camp. Foxclaw leaves the camp with Rosepetal, Millie, and Graystripe.

_A hunting patrol! _I think with glee. _When I'm an apprentice, I'll go hunt! I'll get to prove that I'm a real Thunderclan cat!_

Sorreltail, Toadstep, Bumblestripe, and Moleclaw arrive in camp with mouses in their jaws just as the sun was setting. I kept staring up at the entrance to camp.

_Foxclaw's patrol should be back by now!_

I stand up when the moon is above the camp. Sighing, I pad into the nursery and curl up in my nest. After I close my eyes, I feel someone nosing my fur. I lift my head to stare at Scarletkit.

"I'm sorry I made you do that." She whispers. I smile back at her.

"It's okay!" I mew back. Scarletkit smiles back at me.

"You're a Thunderclan cat! And my friend." Scarletkit mewls with happiness.

"Yay!" I squeal back. Scarletkit opens her mouth to say something, but I hear thundering pawsteps coming towards camp. I scramble to stick my head out of the nursery as Foxclaw, Millie, and Graystripe stampede in. Bramblestar hurries down the rock hill and down to the patrol.

"What happened?" He asks, amber eyes swirling with worry. Foxclaw pants for a moment, then speaks.

"Rosepetal got caught in a fox trap!" Foxclaw breathes. Spiderleg sticks his head out of the elder's den as Daisy sticks her head out of the nursery. Their eyes, wild with horror, dance in the moonlight.

Bramblestar shakes his head. "Starclan help us..."

Jayfeather pads down the hollow. "She'll be gone by now. I'm so sorry."

Daisyfur collapses in heaving sobs. Spiderleg lays down, covering his eyes. Squirrelflight trots to the nursery and nudges us to our nests.

As I fall asleep, I hope that everyone will be alright.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! FYI, next chapter will be when she is near six moons. Please review! :3**


	3. Chapter 3

**I do not own Warriors.**

**Hello! Thank you for reading this story so far! This chapter starts when Iciclekit is three days away from being an apprentice. Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter Three- Apprenticeship

Iciclekit's POV

My eyes drift open, not wanting to sleep anymore. I stand and pad out of the den. A brisk wind plays with my pure, white fur. New Leaf was coming soon, but not soon enough. The bitter cold was hard to bear for the entire clan. Prey was scarce, and Bramblestar had lost a life to greencough. Even though he was recovering, the clan still felt weak from his absence in leading. Scarletkit and Waterkit were Scarletpaw and Waterpaw now, leaving me all alone in the nursery, with no mother to watch me. Daisy was there, but it wasn't the same. Scarletpaw was so busy now! It was like she didn't have time to play with me.

_Then again, I'll be an apprentice in three days anyway!_

I puffed out my chest at the thought. An apprentice! The perfect chance to sow the clan I was a true Thunderclan cat! I'll be the hardest working apprentice, always doing my best! My mentor will be so proud!

_I'll be the best warrior the clans have ever seen!_

A sudden breeze makes me stagger to the side. I growl softly and pad to the fresh-kill pile. As I inspected it, I found a rotten bird with maggots in it.

"Yuck!" I toss the bird to the side. Bloomingwillow transports it somewhere so it isn't eaten. I choose a small thrush and pad to the corner of camp where Bloomingwillow is.

"Thanks." I say through a mouthful of meat. Bloomingwillow nods, as if to say, 'No problem'. Once I'm finished, I stand up and gaze around. No one to play with. I sigh sadly and sit down by the Apprentice's Den.

_It's so boring. I wish I could be an apprentice now!_

A thought hits me.

_Maybe I can go ask Bramblestar! He won't deny another pair of paws bringing prey into camp!_

_But is it a good idea?_

_Of course! He won't mind!_

With that, I climb up the stones that once hurt me with ease. Now that I was bigger, it was almost as natural as breathing. Entering Bramblestar's den, I see the strong leader chewing on a vole. He lifts his head.

"Hello, Iciclekit. Is anything wrong?" He asks, ears twitching.

"Oh, no, not at all! I'm... really bored in camp. There's no one to play with or anything! So I thought, well, if I'm going to be an apprentice in three days, why not become one now? It wouldn't hurt the clan to have another hunter..." I explain. Bramblestar looks at me, amusement in his eyes, amber orbs swirling.

"Very ambitious, aren't you?" Bramblestar chuckles. I feel my ears get hot.

"Alright. Your ceremony will be today once most of the patrols return, which is soon. Get cleaned up!" He smiles after me, like I'm his own daughter. I guess that's how all leaders are.

I wash my fur furiously, trying to look very mature and nonchalant. Soon, patrols start returning. Bramblestar pads to the high-ledge.

"All those old enough to catch their own prey, gather under the high-ledge!"

I scamper to the front of the crowd, eyes wild with excitement. Scarletpaw watches me, confused. "What's up with you?" She asks teasingly. I stare straight ahead. chest puffed out, ignoring her. This was it!

_Finally!_

"Kit-hood is very fun, but we have one kit that _wants _to move on from that!" Bramblestar shouts. Murmurs of surprise are heard through the clan.

"Iciclekit, please step forward." I climb up the rocks to stand near Bramblestar.

"Iciclekit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Iciclepaw."

"Iciclepaw! Iciclepaw! Iciclepaw!" The clan chants. Pride spreads through me to the tip of nose to the tip of my tail.

"Your mentor will be Foxclaw." Bramblestar announced as the fiery-russet tom steps forward.

"Foxclaw, it's about time you took on an apprentice. Lionblaze has trained you into a powerful warrior. You have shown your loyalty and strength to the entire clan. You will be the mentor of Iciclepaw, and I expect you to pass on everything you know to her." Bramblestar finishes. Foxclaw leans forward to touch noses with me. We both face the crowd, and all of Thunderclan seems to accept me for once.

As the crowd disbands, Foxclaw turns to me. "We will begin by taking a tour of the territory. There I will show you how to mark the borders. Once we come back, we can make your nest. Okay?" I nod quickly and energetically.

_I can finally show Thunderclan what I've got!_

Foxclaw starts walking towards the entrance to camp, and I quickly follow. We pad into the forest, and I gaze up in wonder.

"Wow..." I murmur. Foxclaw turns around, grinning.

"Pretty amazing, isn't it?" He comments. I nod as we continue walking.

* * *

I could never even imagine how big our territory was! My bones ached from walking around, but I didn't care. Foxclaw let me mark the borders on my own. Once we were near camp, he directed me to a mossy clump.

"The way to get moss is to unsheathe your claws all the way and make a cut in the moss. Then you pull off a tiny clump. Don't rake up dirt. Okay?" Foxclaw explains. I stretch out my claws and make a cut. I use my teeth to pull out clumps of moss until I have enough. Carrying the plant in my mouth, Foxclaw and I pad to the Apprentice's Den and spread the moss out where I wanted my nest, next to Scarletpaw's. Foxclaw smiles down at me with pride.

"Good job, Iciclepaw. I look forward to training you." With that, he pads out of the den.

_Yes! I'm finally an apprentice!_

After a while, Scarletpaw pads into the den with a small, scrawny rabbit.

"Want to share?" Scarletpaw asks politely. I smile and nod as she settles herself next to me. I only ate two legs before I pushed it away. Scarletpaw tilts her head.

"You're done already?" She asks, confused. I nod.

_A true warrior sacrifices things for their clan!_

Scarletpaw nods. "I'll bring this to Daisy. We only ate a little bit." Scarletpaw stands up and carries the prey towards the Nursery. I begin to think about everything I'll do as an apprentice.

_I'll climb the Sky Oak, I'll win at battle training, I'll kill a dog, I'll bring back lots of prey..._

Scarletpaw pads back in and curls up in her nest. I drift off to sleep, so I can train harder tomorrow.

* * *

Prodding in my side wakes me. Scarletpaw stands over me. "Hunting Patrol!" I jump up and pad out of the den. Foxclaw stands there, watching me approach.

"Morning, Iciclepaw." He greets. I nod back at him.

"Are you teaching me how to do a hunter's crouch today, AND hunt?" I ask eagerly. Foxclaw nods and laughs.

"Apprentices." He rolls his eyes at Drippingcreek. She smiles back. Soon Moleclaw joins us with his apprentice, Waterpaw. With that, we start off for the forest.

Foxclaw takes me to a clearing and does what I think is a hunter's crouch. I quickly copy his form and he nods his approval.

"Watch me." He whispers. Foxclaw stalks forward and suddenly pounces onto... a mouse! I nod at him and suddenly, I spot a vole. I crouch and stalk forward, careful not to step on any twigs or leaves, and careful to keep my tail down. I bunch up my muscles and spring- I got it! I quickly nipped the back of the vole's neck and carried it to Foxclaw.

"Nice catch!" My mentor congratulates me. "Very clean. Bramblestar will be pleased."

We continue hunting for a while, and I catch only one mouse after my vole. On our way back to camp, we came across a strange scent. Strange to me, at least.

"Shadowclan!" Foxclaw growled. "In the middle of our territory! We need to alert Bramblestar!"

We both pelt back to camp. Foxclaw drops his catch on the pile and dashes up to his father's den, leaving me alone to put my prey on the pile and wait. Scarletpaw arrives in camp with Drippingcreek, both running.

"Did you smell Shadowclan too?" I ask Scarletpaw. She nods and flexes her claws into the ground.

"Instead of hunting, we checked the Shadowclan border. They crossed, and we check the entire perimeter of the territory. They didn't leave yet. So there are some Shadowclan cats living in our territory right now." Scarletpaw hisses with anger.

Suddenly, Foxclaw pads out of the Leader's Den with Bramblestar.

"Attention! We will be having warriors go on border patrols, no hunting. We will have apprentices, with their mentors, hunt. This is how we will react to Shadowclan scents." Bramblestar announces. Murmurs are heard through the growing crowd.

"For now, apprentices will be eating and doing their chores. Warriors, I will sort you into patrols." Bramblestar finishes and pads down to the warriors.

I pick up a mouse off the pile and begin to chew on it, thinking,

_When I'm a warrior, I'll show those Shadowclan cats that Thunderclan owns this territory, and that if they step on it, they'll get shredded!_

**So, did you like? Please review. Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**I do not own Warriors.**

**Okay, so... here we are! Hope you like it!**

Chapter Four- Shadowclan

I wake suddenly, eyes flying open. Scarletpaw was standing in front of me, eyes wide with fear and excitement. I leap to my feet.

"What is it?"

"Foxclaw was hunting alone this morning, and he was jumping through the trees when he saw like, the entire Shadowclan. They looked very angry. One cat, behind most of the group, named Starlingwing, kept shouting, 'Cherrynose!' just quiet enough so a cat could hear five tail lengths away, and now Bramblestar has confirmed that Cherrynose was out of the camp when Starlingwing was shouting. She's back now, and she's talking with Squirrelflight and her parents while Bramblestar is organizing a battle group. He said I could go! Then I asked him if you could go, and he said only if you stay near me! Aren't you excited?"

I nod, fur spiking up in anticipation. Then, I grow furious. "How could Cherrynose betray us? Is she- is she Starlingwing's mate?"

"Maybe!" Scarletpaw agrees. "I'll ask my Dad later." Then she pauses. "Of course, if there _is _a later..."

Foxclaw bursts in. "Come on! We're leaving!"

We run out together after my mentor and the battle patrol leaves the camp. Bramblestar announces that we would be making our way to the Shadowclan cats with Foxclaw and Bloomingwillow in the lead, because Foxclaw knew their last location and Bloomingwillow had a great sense of smell. The one thing that was difficult was climbing. We were making our way around through the trees. I knew I'd need to try my hardest to keep up, for my clan!

Finally, Foxclaw shout-whispered, "We're here!" I looked down and saw at least twenty cats, all settled down and looking around, furiously whipping their tails. It was obvious which one was the leader. A big, powerful white tom with black feet was sitting a few tail-lengths in front of a young, ginger tabby-ish tom that looked ashamed. I pricked my ears to listen.

"Starlingwing, you did _what_?" The leader asked, obviously shocked and mad about it.

"It's true, Blackstar. I-I was a Thunderclan cat's..." The cat that appeared to be Starlingwing paused, searching for words.

"Mate!" Snapped Blackstar. Starlingwing shrunk back.

"I wouldn't call her 'mate' as much as 'love interest'-"

"I don't care! You broke the warrior code!" Blackstar hissed, spiking up his fur to appear even larger. Starlingwing looked at his paws in shame.

"Blackstar," Bramblestar called as he leapt down from the trees with Bloomingwillow and Foxclaw by his side. "It appears that we have some confusion. I know you have some questions. I also have some." Shadowclan cats turned their heads.

Foxclaw nodded, trying to appear calm. "Like, for instance, your entire clan is on our territory. Why is that?" Foxclaw hissed at the end to add effect.

Blackstar growled. "We were going to attack. Starlingwing told us that we had to enter your territory, or something bad would happen. He said that he received a dream from Starclan, and we _believed _him. He said that we needed to fight. And is Thunderclan stupid? Three cats to attack an entire clan?"

That's our cue. We all jump down.

"We didn't come alone." Bramblestar retorts. Blackstar's yellow eyes narrow. His clan's cats look surprised. A battle line of warriors come forward, baring their teeth and raking their claws into the grass. Our patrol quickly forms into a battle line as well. I growl and flex my claws in and out of the soft dirt.

Blackstar yowls. "Shadowclan, ATTACK!" His warriors rush forward and start to grapple with us. A big, thick furred, dark brown tabby tom leaps towards me, pushing down my shoulders and slashing at my belly. I yowl in pain and struggle against his powerful grip.

I roll my way out from under him and leap onto his pack, trying to push down his broad shoulders, but all of my efforts are useless. He snaps his sharp teeth onto my tail and I hiss in frustration and agony. I scratch his ear, causing a long gash. He growls and bites my right foreleg, causing a fair amount of blood to flow onto my white fur.

The tom jumps onto my back, and I buckle to the ground. He scratches my back a few times before I hear yowls of my other clanmates, the ones that were left at camp. I hear growling behind me, and the big tom leaps off, bounding back to his leader, his eyes in flames. Soon, we overpower Shadowclan and force them back to their territory.

Whisperingwind puts poultices on my many wounds. I was covered in blood, so she made me roll in a puddle to wash some of the scarlet liquid away. I heard that Bramblestar had almost been killed by Blackstar, but he fought back and forced Shadowclan away.

Once I was down in the clearing with Scarletpaw, I heard Squirrelflight gasp.

"Cherrynose is gone!"

She was right. Cherrynose was nowhere to be seen. She had went on the second patrol, and she must've went with Starlingwing. Poppyfrost retreated to the warriors den, crying, and Berrynose followed her, seeming to be devastated. His amber eyes darken, his cream half tail droops, his two ears, one torn, press against his head. Moleclaw walks to a corner in the camp, not showing any emotion.

Scarletpaw flashes me a look. "We knew it! We should've warned Bramblestar!"

"Yeah, I guess." I answer. I was in a lot of pain, with my leg, my belly slices, my shoulder and back scratches, and many other wounds. It hurt me to move. But I wasn't going to let anyone know that! I needed to be strong for my clan.

So I spent the rest of the evening in silence, devouring a shrew and quickly going to my nest.

Was I fully accepted here yet?

Maybe. By some cats, yes, but there was Waterpaw, and Birchfall, and Berrynose, and Hazeltail, and many more.

I need to prove I have the heart of a warrior, like all of them.


End file.
